Rolls-Royce Exhibition Center reopens

INDIANAPOLIS — The Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust-Allison Branch has reopened the James A. Allison Exhibition Center at a new downtown Indianapolis location.

The nearly 6,000-square-foot facility, located at the Rolls-Royce Meridian Center office, 450 S. Meridian Street, will display a collection of exhibits of jet engines and other equipment made in Indianapolis that power today’s and yesterday’s aircraft – including engines that power C-130J Super Hercules; V-22 Osprey; Global Hawk; Citation X+s; Embraer ERJ jets; various commercial helicopters; and historical engines such as the Allison V-1710 that powered the legendary North American P-51 Mustang, P-40s, and other aircraft.

A Rolls-Royce LiftFan, which provides vertical lift capability for the F-35B Lightning II, is also on display.

In addition to static displays, each exhibit zone is accompanied by an interactive video module with historic, technical and graphical information of the engines.

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) content is incorporated to help guide educators and students through advances in aerospace engineering.

“Since opening our first science and technology exhibition in 1954 – then called Powerama – to citizens, customers and employees, we have believed it is important to show the legacy of more than 100 years of amazing power and progress here in Indianapolis. We also aim to provide visitors a glimpse at our future for the next generation of scientists, technologists, engineers and innovators,” said David Newill, president of the Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust – Allison Branch.

“The Heritage Trust’s mission is to protect and preserve our legacy while demonstrating the innovation that has progressed throughout the decades at Rolls-Royce and our preceding company, Allison Gas Turbines in Indianapolis. This new downtown location gives us an opportunity to share our history in new and exciting ways with Rolls-Royce employees, retirees, customers and the public,” said Phil Burkholder, president of Defense Aerospace, Rolls-Royce North America. “The Heritage Trust will continue to be free and open to the general public. This is made possible by its donors and the hard work of volunteers, which mostly consist of dedicated, retired employees from Rolls-Royce and Allison.”

Larger groups of more than six people wanting to visit the exhibit must register online at Rolls-Royce.com/HeritageIndy. The exhibit is free and open to the public Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Donations are accepted and help the organization build new exhibits, officials noted.

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